HOT TOPIC: Recruitment Events - Is It Worth It?
Dear Readers,
With August and September fast approaching and your chance to join sororities swiftly upon itself - you’ve probably seen different Panhellenic Councils across the globe advertising their recruitment schedule. Compared to other clubs or extracurriculars on campus, whether it occurs before the school semester even starts or occupies the first syllabus week, it can be daunting. So why do it? Why do sororities even need this much of your time? Why do you need this much time to decide if they’re right for you?
I thought the same thing too when I went through recruitment - just off the cusp of COVID-19 - with the first and last hybrid-style format on campus. Then when I actually went through it, and found myself attending every round - I knew it was the best decision I had ever made. But it wasn’t quite that clear at the beginning!…
THE SUMMER I REGISTERED
It was one Sunday afternoon, the last week of July 2021. I’ve traditionally gone camping every weekend with family or friends each summer, and that week was no different, except it was so hot outside that rather than boil alive - I was online for the first time in three days. Scrolling through all the various feeds on Instagram was still as brain-fogging as it is today, I don’t quite recall all the posts I liked or what my feed looked like back then, but I do remember getting a peculiar message in my inbox:
Hey! You’re going to the UofA next semester right? Are you excited for your first semester back in-person?
And yes, this was from a random user I didn’t follow back - and the name @ualbertasororities was clearly an organization, not a person. My self-preservation skills said to ignore it, avoid spam, and to get back outside and pretend it never happened. But I’m a double threat: curious, and I love answering questions. So I responded back.
Soon enough, I was chatting with this person every week - and had signed-up for recruitment right away. I remember my PNM registration number too: Three (3). And unfortunately for me, for the next few weeks, no one reached out to me to talk or let me know what was going on; this was before the days RCs reached out to PNMs as soon as they registered (for support). I drifted back into normalcy, and soon enough, completely forgot I had registered in the first place.
THE WEEK BEFORE RECRUITMENT
Cut to August, weeks after my brother’s 15th and leading up to my 18th birthday in September. I got all the bright little pamphlets from the University of Alberta from my mailbox, a fresh new backpack, and have thoroughly scrolled through Rate my Professor to see whether or not I’d benefit from some extra studying before the semester began. Getting everything ready in my small, but air-conditioned bedroom, the musings of Havana by Camilla Cabello blasted through my phone and I checked the number…
Didn’t recognize it.
Ignored, muted; thankfully not blocked at that point.
Jump to five minutes later, another phone call; same phone number.
Now, wondering if it’s something important, I pick it up.
Hi; is this Tina?
Alright, I’m definitely glad I didn’t hit block.
Jaelyn became my best friend far before recruitment ever started. That was the first day we talked, and for the most part, it was pretty light. Reminding me I had signed-up for this process, explaining how she was my recruitment counsellor and here to support me, and asking if I had taken the time to look at my schedule. I explained I hadn’t, but I did have a pretty hefty first week (unbeknownst to me most Science Labs don’t start till the second or third week, so half of my timetable was technically empty) but she assured me that we’d make it work.
And we did. Soon enough I had penciled in my calendar and was ready to meet Alpha Gamma Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Kappa Alpha Theta, and Delta Gamma all in three days. It was daunting, it was fast-paced, and it was exhilarating. I am a girl who thrives on getting everything done efficiently and with top-tier organization, so this kind of effort from the Recruitment Team meant a lot to me. I was ready for my first week, of in-person recruitment…
But when you’re in the middle of the pandemic, living with your loved ones, things have a way of switching-up on you.
THE FIRST DAY OF RECRUITMENT
I’ve lived and taken care of my grandparents since I was a child. My parents have always been in the picture, same with a younger brother (who just got into Immunology this year - so proud), so we’ve had a crowded household since I could remember. I was going a little stir-crazy during the pandemic; we followed every restriction to a t, and I hadn’t truly been around people who weren’t my immediate family for two years. This was my chance, my moment - after losing my 16th birthday, my graduation - to have my next big chapter in life.
Then, less than 24-hours before the first day of school, the rumblings of a cough spread throughout campus.
A case had started in my Introduction to Biology Course - then it jumped to my Introductory Chemistry Course, my Psychology 104 - soon enough all of CCIS was a walking infection.
I couldn’t go to University, not with two autoimmune loved ones back home.
I couldn’t go through recruitment, I missed my chance.
I called Jaelyn, tearful and frustrated that another life-experience had been put on the backburner because of circumstances outside of my control. She listened to me apologize for nearly twenty-minutes, about how I wasted her time, couldn’t attend my events, and then she said:
Let’s make this work.
In less than 24-hours, Jaelyn managed to switch me into the online recruitment events (again, this was the only hybrid year) and completely changed my schedule. She even helped me learn Zoom in the process - for all my classes - and I was off to the races.
After all my classes, I hopped onto my final Zoom call. My first event wasn’t even a recruitment round (Philanthropy, Sisterhood, or Preference - as we called it back then). It was an Info Night - where I got to see Jaelyn's familiar face, and hear from the Recruitment Team about how the process was going to go. Basic things, like:
How we were going to do the events online, in breakout groups.
Meeting the other PNMs who were assigned to our own RCs.
What questions we should ask, and what different information you got out of each round.
All-in-all, it took about thirty minutes, and the event ended. I stayed for the online murder-mystery party, had a few laughs, and then logged off after my first official school day. I couldn’t stop smiling for the rest of the evening. I think I gave my mother a headache with how much I blabbered about the team, and how kind they were. Sitting here now as part of the Council is crazy to me, just like the rest of my recruitment would feel.
THE DIFFERENT RECRUITMENT EVENTS
So, now we circle back around - why do you attend each Recruitment event?
Simply put, they are not the same. Each one provides different perspectives - and the more experiences you have during this time with the members and chapters, the more benefits you gain.
You’re a more informed PNM. Each event presents different information; finances, the charities of the chapters, their meanings and values, the events they hold, their member expectations. You can get this information after the fact (each PNM needs to know the financial obligations of chapters, for example) and ask questions about them in follow-up rounds; but it’s so much easier hearing it in person with a full presentation.
You get to know the members best. During recruitment, you meet tons of people every day - sometimes new and familiar faces - but it’s still a lot of talking. If you only attend a single round, you meet the least amount of people from each chapter. Despite our organizations having dozens of different members. We like to use the saying: People Join People, so if you’re only meeting 5% of a chapter per round, it’s doing yourself a disservice by not getting to know as many members as possible.
You’ll get more opportunity. In the grand scheme of things - attending more events gives you a greater chance of proceeding further into the recruitment process. If over 150 individuals (my year was near 200) are going through Primary Recruitment, the more events you attend, the more visible you become- the more connections you make with PNMs, Panhellenic, and the sororities themselves. This time is best spent not only to make sure you’re making informed decisions, but also to help you find a place in the community that’s right for you before you’re even initiated.
So - as I said before - I attended every recruitment event.
Twice.
My year we had double events for both in-person and online (the schedule changes every year dependent on the current needs). I did two Philanthropy Rounds, two Sisterhood (Chapter Pride) Rounds, all in one week. The members of different chapters started to say they recognized me in rounds, and I started to remember their names too: Kelly, Katie, Isabelle. I even had a close niche of PNM-pals that would later become my Panhellenic Sisters, who helped me through the entire journey. I asked every question I could during the round: What are your payment plans? What happens if you have a conflicting school schedule with a chapter event? Is it mandatory to live in the house?
Different chapters gave me different answers, and by Preference Night - not only did I narrow down to my top two choices - but my parents gave me an extra special surprise that day.
I could go to school the next week, this time, in person.
THE PREFERENCE NIGHT
Lots of people say there is one defining moment. Sometimes it’s like a firework - bright, fast, and brilliant. Others say it slowly creeps up on them, years into their membership, where they look around the room full of their sisters, smile and say: yeah, this is home.
I was the first one.
Preference Night changed everything for me because I switched the order of my top two choices.
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
I went into Preference Night super excited; after my first day of in-person classes and completing my first week of University (now more stable than I had been at the beginning) I was SO DOWN to dress up and have a more formal event. I wore my favorite dress, curled my hair, and packed a pair of heels in my backpack since there was no way I would be running from CCIS to Tory in heels within five-minutes.
We had Preference Night in Education (ED); can you believe it? All the chapters were assigned a room on one floor, and Panhellenic stayed with the PNMs on the floor below. Our RCs escorted us to each room. I found out later that this is how they did every round in person before, but it was still exhilarating for me. Each event was a) longer, since a PNM only saw a maximum of two chapters that day and b) more personal, as you got to sit and talk to the people you bonded with over the last two weeks. It went by so fast and at the same time, so slow. And before I knew it, Jaelyn was leading me down the hallway to sign my MRABA and pick which chapter was right for me.
Once I signed, I walked out the building - unable to talk to my other PNMs about my choice or ask the members any other questions (for the sake of bias; we call this Strict Silence) - and road the 1-hour long LRT ride back home.
Then, when I walked into my room, sat on my bed and took a second, I started to cry.
Had I made the wrong choice?
Did the chapter I fell in love with even want me?
What if I didn’t even get a bid? Was it all for nothing? Falling in love with a community and group of people I adored; only to wake up the next day and not have it reciprocated?
Worse, tomorrow was my 18th birthday - it fell on Bid Day that year - and I didn’t even plan anything because I wanted to save the date to attend the chapter celebrations.
I went to bed, for the first time during the entire process, feeling frightened.
THE FINAL DAY
It started with a phone call, and this story ends with one.
9:23am, September 12th, 2021: Call from Jaelyn (RC) -
Hey, good morning! I’m very excited to tell you that you’ve been extended a bid.
One second I was at Rutherford Library, sorting through my flashcards, the next I was up and walking to Education Building ready to know which sorority I was paired with.
I was beyond moved - and happy - when I found my home away from home.
Bid Day is a special day. Lots of people say Bid Day = Best Day; I disagree, I think there are tons of moments after bid day during your membership that are worth so much more (your first little, elections, initiations, doing bid day as a member.) but it was special. You never forget it. The excitement of running home and getting to see all the members with their decorated houses and outfits and treats that are just for you. Taking photos till your cheeks hurt because you adore your new shirt and want to revel in every moment. Meeting the members you didn’t get to know during the rounds - who even though they barely know you, talk and listen and protect you like you’ve known them their whole life. I came home that day, cheeks aching from smiling and hands full of sweet treats and sweet notes, feeling lighter than I ever had been.
For me, it was easily the best birthday ever.
THE SHORT & SWEET OF IT…
Just like life, every recruitment round has its purpose. If you can’t make a round because of conflicting times - work, school, etc - your Recruitment Counsellor is there to ensure you have proper work-life balance, but makes sure you aren’t missing out on any crucial moments during the process. When you get into a sorority, and look back at how you made it, you’ll want to giggle at all the little moments, sit back and say: yeah, I made the right choice. And the best way to do that is to go through the recruitment events. Ask your questions, bond with other PNMs, meet the members, and above all - be yourself. Be confident, dress in what makes you comfortable, don’t be afraid to be the one to speak out, and have a good time. Have a fun time. Looking back at it, my recruitment period was probably one of my favorite moments in my sorority experience - and even though I can’t, I’d do it all over again if given the chance.
That’s all for now - and if you want to sign up for recruitment or see our upcoming events, check out the links below!
XOXO,
Tina